Attenuation of pharmaceuticals, nutrients and toxicity in a rural sewage lagoon system integrated with a subsurface filtration technology.
Chemosphere
; 209: 767-775, 2018 Oct.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-29960944
Although many studies have addressed the ability of subsurface filtration systems to remove emerging contaminants from wastewater at micro- and mesocosm-scale, little is known about their performance on full-scale wastewater treatment facilities. To understand better how effective these systems can be for municipal wastewater polishing, we assessed the ability of a full-scale lagoon-subsurface filter system located in Dunnottar, Manitoba, Canada, to attenuate regulatory wastewater parameters, nutrients, pharmaceuticals, and toxicity over the course of the discharge periods in 2015 and 2016 (June-October). Pharmaceuticals included ß-blockers, anticonvulsant drugs, and macrolide and sulfonamide antibiotics. Out of six consistently detected pharmaceuticals, four were efficiently removed through lagoon treatment (e.g. clarithromycin, metoprolol, propranolol), while two persisted to a certain extent (e.g. carbamazepine, sulfamethoxazole), even after subsurface filtration. Attenuation was observed for nutrients with averages of 40% and 60% for ammonia and total phosphorus respectively within the filter, consistent with previous pilot-scale studies at this facility. Compliance with regulations for conventional wastewater parameters at the effluent was observed, as well as reduced acute toxicity (as determined by Microtox®) from the primary lagoon to the effluent, and little likelihood of acute toxicity in receiving waters. Our results suggest that first, the full-scale system has an overall similar performance when compared to the previously studied pilot-scale system; second, there was no apparent effect of acclimation on the attenuation of studied contaminants or toxicity; and finally, the concentrations of contaminants do not appear to pose an acute risk for aquatic species in the receiving environment.
Palavras-chave
Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Esgotos
/
Poluentes Químicos da Água
Tipo de estudo:
Etiology_studies
/
Risk_factors_studies
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Chemosphere
Ano de publicação:
2018
Tipo de documento:
Article
País de afiliação:
Costa Rica
País de publicação:
Reino Unido